Tax sale article needs more details

Editor,

I am confused by your article “Land Grab Threatens Neighbors” because it is apparent key facts are missing.

When the real property is purchased at a Tax Deed auction for the non-payment of real property taxes, the highest bidder does not receive good marketable title. The successful bidder must either acquire a deed from the prior owner or do a Suit to Quiet Title, whereby the neighbors who believe they have been harmed could file a Motion to Intervene to become a part of the suit. If the neighbors spent the monies to consult with an attorney who is familiar with these proceedings, then they would have learned this plus more.

It was not clear from your article if an individual or an association owned the property prior to it being sold for delinquent taxes. If it was an association and these neighbors who are complaining are part of the association then they should have collectively bid at the auction to control the situation and have the title transferred to their names. By law, the property itself is to be posted about the upcoming auction; therefore, there was physical notice for the neighbors to see besides the advertisement in the local newspaper. If it can be proven that any of the pre-requisites of the tax deed sale or the initial tax certificate sales were not complied with, then the sale can be voided.

If these neighbors did not own the property but used it, then who did they think was paying the real property taxes? Was the property in the name of an individual or an association? Have they thought about an adverse possession claim against the new owner?

Was the property properly taxed? Under Florida Statutes 196 there are exemptions for parcels that are common elements; but without details of the ownership and how the parcel became a common element, I cannot comment on this. Hopefully someone with the full details will pursue it.

In your original article you said “... the 818 Trust threatened to turn the utility easement behind his and other homes into a dog park unless he paid up.” Evidentially, these neighbors took more time to complain about things than to do proper research. If there was a recorded or physical utility easement, then there was no threat of losing the easement because Florida Statutes 19.572 specifically addresses this issue on point. The heading for this section is “Easements for public service purposes or for drainage or ingress and egress survive tax sales and deeds.” This is not to say the new owner could not utilize the property for another purpose (such as a dog park) if the zoning permitted the intentional use. Normally, the zoning for a dog park is a special exception, and the neighbors would be notified of such a change of zoning; thus, they would have a chance to appear before the proper authority to voice their objections.

In the event there were any restrictions and covenants in existence prior to the tax deed foreclosure sale of the property, those items survive the sale pursuant to FS 197.573.

I do not feel it is fair to call the buyers scammers, but they are opportunists. I am sure the same complaining neighbors would, if they had the opportunity, purchase their neighbor’s house at one-third of today’s real value and try to resell it for a profit. It is all about being in the right place at the right time ... and having the knowledge to be there.

Would you call the people who are going to the courthouse mortgage foreclosure auctions, scammers?

Shirley K. Lucas
Ark Realty & Investment
Fort Myers

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